Seven Devils
by I Am District 12's Diamond
Summary: Sequel to Shake It Out. It's darkness that can consume the corners of the mind to make them want to commit evil deeds. Shadows are dangerous, the flame of the candle cannot control it. Because eventually, the flame will burn out.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note: **

**Hey! This is the sequel to Shake It Out! If you've just randomly stumbled across this is a tired state, please read it! And if you're one of my previous readers, I'd like to thank you guys so very much for stickin with me through Shake It Out. I'd like to thank BFCL, Cato Lover 101, tissue749, CatnipGirlOnFire, sundragons9 and thepinkmartini for reviewing the final chapter of Shake It Out. I hope you like this, and please, if you can, review!**

* * *

**Seven Devils**

_Holy water, cannot help you now  
Thousand armies couldn't keep me out  
I don't want your money  
I don't want your crown  
See I've come to burn your kingdom down  
Holy water, cannot help you now  
See I've come to burn your kingdom down  
And no rivers and no lakes can put the fire out  
I'm gonna raise the stakes, I'm gonna smoke you out  
Seven devils all around me  
Seven devils in my house  
See they were there when I woke up this morning  
I'll be dead before the day is done  
Seven devils all around you  
Seven devils in your house  
See I was dead when I woke up this morning  
I'll be dead before the day is done  
Before the day is done  
_~Seven Devils, Florence + The Machine

* * *

**Seven Devils**

**Chapter 1: Home with Seven**

The fifteen-year-old boy feels uneasy. Not even the fancy food on the train could ease him into tranquility. He washes his hands over and over and over. He can't stop. It's there. He can see the splotches and spots of it on his hands. But it won't come off. It just stays, and any amount of scrubbing is futile. It won't come off. It stays, no matter what he does. Layers of his skin come off, but the marks stay. The red marks won't wash off his hands.

"Cato!" comes Effie's voice from behind the door.

"What?" he calls back.

"What are you doing in there?" she says, knocking at the door.

"Washing my hands!" he says back.

"You've been in there for half an hour!" says Effie. "It can't possibly take you that long to wash your hands!"

But it does take Cato that long. He doesn't see people as blurry colours. He sees them as people with a certain colour circling them, making them glow. When he boarded the train, the Capitol citizens were in their fancy attire, but they had a red hue. A few were pink, but Cato couldn't figure out why. Especially since one of them was a Gamemaker. Not the head Gamemaker of course. Seneca is far too busy to attend the young victor's leaving ceremony.

Cato doesn't know the Gamemaker's name, but he's having a feeling he'll figure it out. Maybe not soon, but he'll eventually learn who the Gamemaker is.

"Well, it takes me this long!" he shouts back.

"Cato! Get out-"

"Effie, don't," Cato hears Haymitch's hushed voice behind the door. "He's going through the four stages of becoming a victor."

_Four stages?_ Cato thinks.

"He's on the second one," Haymitch says. "The first, denial. The second, guilt."

Cato can honestly say Haymitch knows what he's talking about. Haymitch has been through much worse, so he'll know some of the worst things victors can go through. Finnick Odair is a prime example. He won, so he's used as a toy to the Capitol citizens. Johanna Mason is in a similar situation to Haymitch, yet, it's so different. When Johanna won her Games, she became desirable. Obviously, President Snow wanted Johanna to go into the special business Finnick is in.

But Cato knows roughly what Johanna would've done. She probably would have laughed in his face, said "Hell, no" then walked away. But Cato had noticed that Johanna had looked rather broken and depressed on her victory tour. Cato thinks, no, he _knows_ that when Johanna arrived home, her family was murdered.

"And lay off him," Haymitch says in a hushed voice, so Cato can't hear. But he can hear. "He thinks his family, his girl and her family are dead."

"They are!" he shouts back. "I know they're dead!"

"They won't be," says Haymitch. "There's always a warning."

Cato softens and this and turns the tap off, and the water stops running. In a weak voice, he says, "A warning?"

"Yes," he says. "It can either be Snow talking to you or a white rose in your room. I got the rose."

"I didn't look," says Cato.

"Makes no difference," says Haymitch. "You'd be able to smell it miles off. Smells like blood, unlike Snow's roses, which smell like perfume."

"I wouldn't have noticed," says Cato. "My hands smell like blood."

Haymitch sighs. He didn't want this to happen to him, but it has. "Just hurry up. We're almost in District Twelve."

But Haymitch knows it'll be worse for Cato when they get home. The first thing he sees won't be his family or his girl. He'll see the heart-broken boy and the depressed best friend, and the sobbing brother, and the hateful parents. The parents hate him, because they can't hate anyone else.

Haymitch just prays that his family and girl will help him through it.

* * *

The fourteen-year-old girl tries to conceal her excitement, but it's almost physically impossible. She's unbelievably thrilled. She doesn't know whether to laugh, to cry, or to jump up and down with Prim. But she doesn't none of the above. All she does is make her way to the train station with a wide smile on her face. Her little ten-year-old sister keeps teasing her, but Katniss just ignores it. She only cares about him at this moment.

She missed him so much, and even to just see him in person would mean so much to her. She's in love with a victor of the Hunger Games, who was from District 2. She can safely say she didn't see it coming, not once. She hadn't even envisioned a boy in her future, or any real sort of relationship like that. She supposes that she's changed. Most of a person's personality develops in childhood, and she did meet Cato when she was younger.

She wonders what she would've been like if she hadn't ever met Cato, if he'd never came to District 12. She imagines that everything would be drastically different from what it is now. Cato may not have been reaped, but he might have volunteered. And not to protect anyone either; because he would've been brainwashed into thinking the Games are a good thing. And where would she be? Dead, maybe. She only hunted with her father until Cato came along. So she would've died, with the lack of food.

"Katniss," says Gale. "Are you okay?"

She doesn't realise she's basically been bouncing. "Fine, I'm fine."

He nods, but he glances at her out of the corner of his eye to make sure she doesn't explode with excitment. Katniss is smaller than the crowd in front of her, so she pulls at her pockets on her pants and jumps up and down. Gale shakes his head and grabs her arms. Eventually, after some time, she's on his strong shoulders, above the crowd.

"Thanks," she says.

Gale sees girls glaring at Katniss enviously, and smirks. "Don't mention it." Then he moves to the girls, '_She's in love with the victor_.' "Don't worry, I'm free."

* * *

The fourteen-year-old boy stands at the edge of the train station. Mandatory to attend. Capitol reporters are at the edges of the station and Peeta wishes that Katniss would shove them out of the way. That would be amazing. He feels slightly jealous of Gale Hawthorne, wishing that Katniss would at least touch his arm or something. Peeta thinks he's getting a bit desperate.

The crowd cheers as the train pulls into the station.

* * *

The fifteen-year-old boy is instantly embraced by his sister and brother. He smiles. _They're alive! Alive!_ He holds them tight to him, and it sounds like Dabria's being reduced to hysteria. Well, he knows his sister, she isn't exactly sane. They're crying, his siblings are crying tears of joy and they're both rambling and Cato can't help but laugh.

"Thank God you're back, Cato!" Nuri shouts. "Dabria was being an idiot and she kept having meltdowns!"

"Shut up, Nuri!" Dabria's shout is muffled by Cato's bright yellow jacket.

* * *

The thirteen-year-old girl doesn't want to let her brother go. When he tries to move to give his mother a hug, she holds onto his foot and makes him drag her with him. He laughs as she grumbles something about being forced to wear a dress. She's so happy he's back. She's never been happier, actually. There's never been a moment in her life that was as great and grand as this.

She watches as he brings his mother in for a hug, and she sighs contently. _He's back! He's back! He's really back! _When he walks away from his mother, a group of girls surrounds him. She laughs as he tells the girls to step away, and go give Gale some attention. Just when the girls are about to cross into his personal space, a girl comes crashing through the crowd.

For a moment the girls stare upon this girl in envy. Dabria wonders when the girls from District 12 became such nasty people. It's silent, and Dabria pushes the girls out of the way when they don't seem to get the message. Katniss stands there, just a metre away from him. Her arms dangle uselessly at her sides, as does Cato's.

Dabria sees Katniss' eyes looking at Cato up and down. Cato does the same to her. When their eyes meet, Dabria feels like the whole of District 12 is intruding on an intimate moment it their lives. He wants to scream at the Capitol reporters to leave, but she can't. Where would that get her? Nuri causes enough trouble.

After a while, Dabria expects them to hug, to cry, to laugh, to say hi or something that normal people do. But all Katniss says is, "You look ridiculous."

The corners of his lips twitch up into a full-blown smile. "Geez, thanks Katniss," says Cato. "Here I was, expecting a warm welcome, but the first thing you do is insult me." Then it's silent for a bit. "And yes, this suit is ridiculous."

Katniss laughs, and the District 12 citizens find themselves chuckling along. Gale begins cheering and wolf-whistling as Katniss launches herself into Cato's arms. She's laughing and crying and so is Cato, but he buries his head in her hair, hiding away in the side of her neck.

Dabria hears Cato say, "I thought you were dead."

"Why? How?" says Katniss.

"I thought Snow had done something to you..."

"I'm fine," she says. "Everyone's fine."

Katniss pulls back and grins at him, as he raises an eyebrow. "Where's Pri-"

Before he can finish his sentence, said girl jumps onto his back, giggling like a maniac. "Hi Cato!"

"Prim," he says. "Getting off would be nice."

"Nuh-uh!"

"Prim!" he says, laughing as she clings to him tighter. "Please?"

"Since you asked so nicely...no!"

"Prim, come on!"

"You have to say it!"

"No I don't!"

"You do!"

"I do not!"

"Yeah, you do!"

"Fine," Cato sighs. "I'm a pretty little princess..."

"Good!" Prim says, jumping off his back.

He takes Katniss' hand and drags her toward the back of the crowd. "Where're you going?" she asks.

He shakes his head, "There's something I have to do."

* * *

The fourteen-year-old girl lets Cato drag her away from her family and through town. She assumes he just wants to say goodbye to his old home before going to victor's village, but he passes right by the house. He's different now. He says nothing to her, he just keeps walking and dragging her along with him. She watches as his eyes scan the buildings.

"Where are you going?" asks Katniss.

When he doesn't answer, she says it again. Then again. Then again. But she gets no response. She wonders if this is even her Cato, or some messed up version the Capitol sent in for the giggles. He isn't himself at all, at the moment.

"I guess I'll just go then," she says.

She tries to slip her hand out of his, but his grip tightens.

"No," he says, turning around to face her. "I need you there."

"Why?" she whispers. He pecks her on the lips.

"Dawn asked me to give the letters to her family, her best friend, and her boyfriend," he whispers.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" asks Katniss. "You could try tomorrow or-"

He cuts her off. "No, I have to do it today. It's the least they deserve."

She sighs, but forces a weak smile onto her face. "Okay."

He smiles. "Okay," he says. He tugs at her arm. "C'mon."

Cato thinks that it's best to head to Tara's house first. She might be the easiest one to deal with. Keyword here: might. Who knows how traumatised this girl could be. She could be as bad as the state Dawn's family could be in. Maybe she might be stronger than that and is slowly getting over the loss of her best friend.

But the chances of Tara being fine is like a mere dot on a skyscraper in the Capitol. You can't see that chance.

Katniss holds Cato's hand tightly as he uses his free hand to knock on the door of the sweet shop. That's the buisness Tara's family own. Brook's Sweets. A bell rings as Cato slides the door open. Appearing for the victor coming to the District is mandatory. But it isn't mandatory like the reaping is. It's said to be mandatory but no one has to go.

A man with dark hair and blue eyes stands behind the counter. He smiles as the door opens, but it looks weak. He's about Cato's height, which is rather tall. The man's eyes flash to Katniss, then to Cato. Then, it's as if the man turns to stone. His face hardens, but there's still softness in his eyes.

"Sir, I'm-"

"I know who you are," says the man. "And why are you here?"

"I need to give Tara a letter," says Cato.

The man coughs. "Give it here. I'll make sure she gets it."

* * *

_Dear Tara,_

_Call me an idiot if you want, but, whatever. Obviously, if you're reading this, it means I died and Cato won. Please don't hate him for winning, just because I died. Unless he killed me, then go ahead. But I doubt he has killed me. He's a good person. How've you been holding up? I hope you've been keeping Ash sane. How's buisness at the sweet shop? I hope it's good._

_I pinned a yellow feather to the back of this letter. Since I'm apparently dead, you'll want something to remember me by other than fading memories. I don't want to be one of those things where people aren't even sure they existed because they're gone. So the feather's there and so is this letter. Hold them dear, and never lose them._

_You know you've been like a sister to me, right? You were there when Ember was burnt (I'm still funny when I'm dead, see the irony?), and when Ash lost it. I count you as family, and some of the best family anyone could ever ask for. I need you to know that. I also want you to know that you were going to help me marry Ash. I would've ran and you would've pushed me back into his arms._

_This is hard for me too, y'know? That's always been my problem. I never think how horrible anything will be for myself, but I think about my family._

_Promise me you'll take care of Ash for me. Make sure he's happy. Don't let him lose himself. Because I don't want to meet him in the afterlife this early. You take care of him, and don't let him forget that I still love him. I love you like I love my family._

_Remember me always. _

_It's always darkest before the dawn._

_X Dawn._

* * *

"Mr Lucas," Cato says in a sad voice.

Said man has his eyes closed, his head in one hand. "What do you want?"

"I'm a simple messenger," says Cato. "For your daughter's letters."

* * *

_Dear father,_

_I know we may have had our differences, but we're family. If you're reading this, I'm dead and Cato won. Don't hate him for winning, unless he killed me. Then again, the whole district would hate him if he killed me, wouldn't they? Anyway, is mother okay? I hope she is. Don't take your anger out on anyone. Dead people can do things, and if you so much as touch Ember, I will get Ash to murder you._

_I apologise for being so...hostile. But Ember is important to me, so leave him out of this. I don't want him getting hurt. Don't touch mother either. Don't. And don't think about hurting Cato or his family, or his girlfriend and her family._

_I'm sorry I'm dead. There, I'm putting it out there. I'm probably lucky now. I feel sorry for Cato, since he's alive. I don't want to know what will happen to him. I wish I could know what's happening to him. I don't want him to go physco. He was like a brother to me in that arena, and I don't want his victory to be something that haunts him._

_There's a yellow feather on the back of this to remember me._

_I love you, father. I need you to know that. We may not have gotten along, but I had my reasons; your drinking helps no one. Don't drink more. The family needs you more now that I'm gone, so you can't just shut them out._

_Don't leave them. _

_It's always darkest before the dawn._

_X Dawn._

* * *

_Dear mother,_

_Now, I must be dead, otherwise why would you be reading this? Prying, would be the answer to that. Don't hate Cato for winning, unless he killed me then be my guest. He wouldn't have killed me. He's too good of a person to do something as inhumane as that._

_Is Ember okay? Make sure he is. Stop father from drinking, make sure he stops. It's good for no one if he continues to drink. Don't let him abuse you. If it happens get Ash, even getting Cato's an option. Don't let anything bad happen. Keep Ember safe, and try not to argue with father. _

_If father does get drunk, then take Ember and go to Tara's or Ash's. If they are somehow out somewhere, go to Cato's. It might not help him; he'll be in that guilt stage. The stages of death. Like a devil inside his soul. But go there. Cato would be willing to do anything to make up for my death, and he wouldn't mind putting a roof over your head for a bit._

_Ash will help get you some food. He will, he promised._

_And never forget me._

_I will not be a faded memory, so there's a yellow feather pinned onto the back of this letter (I ripped it from the dress I wore in the interviews, Cinna didn't mind). Make sure you keep it close to your heart, so I'll always be close to you, even when the day is done._

_It's always darkest before the dawn._

_X Dawn._

* * *

_Dear Ember,_

_I'm dead if you're reading this. Cato's won. Don't hate him unless he killed me. Don't be upset. But remembering me is one thing you need to do. You know how I used to go on those idiotic rants about how I will make people in a hundred years remember my name? Well, I don't think that'll happen. But still, don't ever let this family forget about me._

_Don't be sad. I'm at peace now. It will be okay, you will be fine. I hope you know how much I love you, little flame. I know, I know. You're fifteen-years-old, and I still treat you like you're five. I can't help it. I really cannot._

_If you can feel something fluffy on the back of this letter, it's a yellow feather. It's to remember me. I know you'll never forget me, but keep it, just in case. When you miss me, you can look at the feather, and know that I'm happy. I may not be with Ash, but I'm at peace._

_You're a little fire. A beacon. Never forget, beacons burn brightest between bluebells._

_Little flame, make sure father doesn't lose it. The last thing I want is you getting hurt. If he's drunk, go with mother to Ash's or Tara's or even Cato's. They all care, remember that._

_Beacons burn brightest between bluebells._

_It's always darkest before the dawn._

_X Dawn._

* * *

"Here comes the hardest part," says Cato.

"It'll be okay," says Katniss.

"Really?" says Cato. "I'd be surprised if he didn't punch me."

The Seam door swings open, revealing a boy a bit taller than Cato who still looks sad. How long has it really been since Dawn died? Mourning takes time, but still. Cato expected anger, not sadness. The boy has short, dark brown hair and grey eyes. His pupils are dialated, practically bulging out of his head. His eyebrows are drawn together in a questioning manor.

"What do you want?" he asks.

"I'm only here for Dawn," says Cato.

"Then say what you have to say," says Ash. He folds his arms over his chest.

"I have a letter," says Cato.

Ash is about to slam the door in his face when he notices the handwriting on the letter. Unmistakably Dawn's. He snatches the letter and mutters a quick thanks before disappearing into his home.

* * *

_Dear Ash,_

_If you're reading this, it means I have died and Cato has won. Don't hate him, unless he killed me. Which I'm possitive he hasn't. I don't even know what to say. Then again, dead people aren't meant to speak, are they? Anyway, hope you're alright. Don't do anything drasticor aything you'll regret. Stay near Tara, you'll be better together._

_I hope you'll get through it without me. I want you to be happy. I want you to get married, have kids, and live happiy ever after. I'm upset it couldn't be me, but sometimes fate just goes down that way. We can't control it. We're pawns, and I wasn't the queen in this game._

_Keep Ember safe. I know he's fifteen, but he's like a little boy to me, and I don't want anything bad to ever happen to him. If my father so much as breathes the same air as Ember, make him hurt. Make him know what it feels like to be in Ember's position. Don't let him do anything to my mother either. Don't let him go near your family, or Tara's, or Cato's and his girlfriend's._

_I don't want any more blood on my hands, but I can deal with it if it's my father's blood._

_Don't let him get to you. Don't let his horrid voice tell you anything different from what I'm telling you now. I love you so much. I love you for forever and more. So just know that. I love you, in life and death._

_There's a feather on the back of this letter to remember me by. Never ever forget me._

_And always remember; ash can hurt too._

_I love you, Ash Leote._

_It's always darkest before the dawn._

_XXXXX Dawn._

* * *

Cato tosses and turns in his bed. They won't leave. There they are, floating around. Satin isn't one of them, which confuses him. Maybe it's because he never knew how bad her death must have been. Maybe it's because her death isn't on his hands. But they are there; all seven of them. The seven people he feels responsible for killing. They glow white, and red.

They're hallows. Evil spirits. They want them to join him because of what he's done to them, but they just cross the room. They're translucent, and are pale as snow. They float around, and they want him dead, to join their endless suffering.

_Seven._

Lux.

Victor.

Calixte.

Electra.

Trev.

Rhian.

Dawn.

District 1, 2, 3, 6, 10 and 12. All of the children Cato feels responsible for. For their deaths. He hadn't killed them all, but he witnessed some of their deaths. He could have saved them, instead of letting them become something not even holy water could fight.

They're hell angels.

Follows of the lord of the underworld. They tell him to join him, because he deserves the endless suffering they've recieved. He knows he does. He deserves to be one of them. He thinks about doing it, joining them. Just so they can't haunt his days and his nights.

The way things are going, Cato thinks he may be dead before the day is done.

The seven call for his blood, and these ghosts want him to suffer.

The deathly seven scream.

And so does Cato.

He no longer wants nor needs the crown, or the money.

_Anything's better than this_, he thinks as he stops screaming.

Maybe something else is.

* * *

**A/N: Thanx for reading! Please, if you can, review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: This is just a short chapter, but it's been ages since I updated. I've been invested in school a lot more and random stories so...yeah. 'Overload' is officially on hiatus. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Please review!**

* * *

**Seven Devils**

_Holy water, cannot help you now_  
_Thousand armies couldn't keep me out_  
_I don't want your money_  
_I don't want your crown_  
_See I've come to burn your kingdom down_  
_Holy water, cannot help you now_  
_See I've come to burn your kingdom down_  
_And no rivers and no lakes can put the fire out_  
_I'm gonna raise the stakes, I'm gonna smoke you out_  
_Seven devils all around me_  
_Seven devils in my house_  
_See they were there when I woke up this morning_  
_I'll be dead before the day is done_  
_Seven devils all around you_  
_Seven devils in your house_  
_See I was dead when I woke up this morning_  
_I'll be dead before the day is done_  
_Before the day is done_  
~Seven Devils, Florence + The Machine

* * *

_Let the sky fall (let the sky fall)  
When it crumbles (when it crumbles)  
We will stand tall (we will stand tall)  
Face it all together  
Let the sky fall (let the sky fall)  
When it crumbles (when it crumbles)  
We will stand tall (we will stand tall)  
Face it all together  
At skyfall  
_~Skyfall, Adele

* * *

**Seven Devils**

**Chapter 2: Trouble**

_Ring! Ring!_

The fifteen-year-old boy rolls around in his bed. He can hear some strange ringing, but he can't bring himself to care. He's too tired to care about anything right now. He continues to toss and turn, and when the ringing stops, he assumes that it was in his head. Then again, a lot of things have just been in his head lately.

_Ring! Ring!_

He hears someone calling his name. He assumes it's the hallows.

_Ring! Ring!_

What the-

"Cato!"

Cato springs up from his bed. "What?"

"The phone's ringing," says Dabria.

"Answer it," he says.

"It'll only be for you, Cato," she says with a roll of her eyes.

He groans and climbs out of his bed. He's in in some pyjamas that were in a draw in their new house. They're soft and blue; Cato's just glad they aren't yellow. But they're warm and they fit him perfectly compared to his old clothes. He prefers to wear his older clothes, though. They remind him of who he is.

_Ring! Ring!_

"Hurry up Cato!" Dabria shouts.

_Ring! Ring!_

"I'm going!"

_Ring! Ring!_

When Cato reaches the phone that's in the study of their new house, he almost rips it off the wall. A part of him wishes he had so he would never have to hear that infernal ringing again, over and over. Then again, the Capitol would just end up replacing it anyway. Cato closes the door to the study. If Nuri's awake he'll want to know who's calling. Cato doesn't want to involve any of his loved ones in this horrid thing.

He moves over to the desk. It's hard polished mahogany. There is a plush red chair tucked under it. He pulls it out and plops down onto it. He finds that he could easily just fall asleep at this moment. Then he remembers that someone's calling, he groans and places the phone over his ear.

"Hello?" he says.

"Warm welcome, I see," says a male voice.

"What...?" says Cato. "Who is this?"

The man on the end of the phone gasped. "Who's the sexiest man alive?"

"Well, I'd say me, but that's obviously not the answer you're looking for," says Cato.

"Who'd you think?"

"...Finnick Odair?"

"You took your sweet time," says Finnick.

"Why are you calling?" asks Cato.

"Can't I just check up on the latest victor?"

Cato knows the answer: yes. But there's something else. A distorted edge to Finnick's voice. He's heard the man on the television before, whether it's a recap of the man's Games, or just an interview. He never sounds the way he does at the moment. Cato would think that Finnick is just being a little banal this morning, with it being morning. Cato has noticed over the years that the famous Finnick Odair is less of a morning person and more of a night person.

Although, the man is not just banal. It has a certain edge that says 'we need to speak in private'. But about what? Cato tilted his head, even though the victor on the other end of the phone could not see him. Cato attempts to tell himself that the idea of Finnick Odair wanted to speak with him in private is ludicrous.

Despite this, Cato has the suspicion that Finnick does want to speak with him. Actually, he suspects that Finnick does not only want to speak with him, but that it would be in Cato's best interest that he speak with the twenty-one-year-old victor. Cato feels rigid. Finnick may need to speak with him. He may not want to, he may need to.

Finnick, efficiently cutting off Cato's thought patterns, says, "I'm at the train station. Hurry down."

With that, Finnick hangs up, and Cato rushes to hunt for clothes for the weather.

* * *

"What is it?"

Finnick looks around at the poorest district in all of Panem. He fights the urge to not wrinkle his nose in disgust. He's not disgusted by the people, or anything. He's disgusted by the fact that the Capitol take away their children and bathe themselves in riches this place couldn't imagine, and they leave these people to suffer.

His eyes settle on the boy in front of him. Well, more like a young man. The young man in front of him tilted and twisted the rules of the Games. Finnick knows that the saltiness of those tears didn't taste nice. He remembers the young man's swollen red eyes, the water pooling out of them, the splotches that they left.

Despite having to look out for his tributes, Finnick was cheering on this boy during his Games. Cato planted the seeds, but someone else needs to make them grow. Cato may not have done anything that rebellious in the arena, but President Snow obviously didn't think that. He was on the watch of this boy and the girl.

Finnick should've anticipated the rumours. The whispers passed between victors. If the Capitol discovered that they knew these secrets, they may not even be lenient to Finnick. He knows this.  
But he can't bring himself to care. He knows his death is inevitable; everyone's is. It may be early on in life, or it may be later. But time always catches up with you, and swooped down and takes you. It is an unstoppable, irrevocable act.

He knows of the Capitol's whispers, too. He has received so many secrets from his fancy Capitol lovers. He has managed to capture some valuable ones. Some risky ones. Some deathly ones. He has kept these precious secrets to himself all these years, only letting a few slip out to Annie - he loves and trusts her, so she wouldn't tell; then again, not many people would believe anything that came out of an insane girl's mouth.

However, Finnick has been given a secret that the victor in front of him needs to hear.

The consequences are dire.

"We need to go to your old home," whispers Finnick. "Where there aren't any cameras. This is important, Cato. Seriously important."

All Cato does is scrunch his eyebrows together in confusion. "Okay."

* * *

"What's so important that we can't even go to my house?" asks Cato.

"Everyone knew you were trouble," says Finnick.

"Excuse me?"

Cato is thoroughly confused. One moment he's asleep, then the next, Finnick Odair is telling him that everyone knew he was trouble. They know he is trouble. That's why he won over the majority of the Capitol. They all like a bit of trouble. A troublemaker. A pinch of spice. That's why they love Finnick Odair, isn't it?

"Everyone."

Cato sits down at his old kitchen table and folds his arms. He rests his chin on his crossed arms, and raises an eyebrow at the man in front of him. He thought this was really urgent. He didn't think that all of this would involve Finnick Odair telling his that he's trouble. He knows that. He hasn't caused that much trouble, has he? No, he couldn't of. He played the Games the way the Capitol wanted him to. He's fine.

At least...he thinks he is.

"From that moment you got on that stage, we all saw it coming," says Finnick.

"Who?"

Finnick glances at the table and crosses his arms. He paces back and forth a bit and then uncrosses his arms. "Me, Annie Cresta, Johanna Mason, all of the other victors. And most importantly, President Snow."

Cato tilts his head at the man. He understands, yet, he doesn't at the same time. What is Finnick trying to get across? That he causes trouble? That can't be the only reason, otherwise Finnick's journey from District 4 would've been utterly pointless. Maybe it was pointless. Or maybe his journey wasn't a waste of time. Perhaps this strange speech leads to something important that he must reveal to Cato.

"I know you are aware of what I've been forced into, Cato," says Finnick. "But I try to use it as an advantage against them. See...I receive secrets."

Cato raises one eyebrow. "Secrets?"

"Yeah," he confirms. "And I've learned quite a few dark secrets. But I have recently discovered one that does not benefit you."

The young man in question remains silent but tilts his head forward in a slight nod, gesturing for Finnick to continue his explanation. He can faintly hear his heartbeat pounding in his ears, thundering along like drums. His cool and calm composure is slipping away from him; he can feel it; it feels cold. He shifts in his seat, disrupting the hushed silence that Cato finds aggravating. He wishes it would end.

"President Snow is not happy with you, Cato. Particularly with your rebellious actions."

"I wasn't rebellious."

"Yes, but being a troublemaker is being rebellious. You were being rebellious without even knowing."

_Dawn lays before him, dead. He did the only thing he could think of. Around Dawn, are flowers and yellow feathers. Cato found the feathers lying on the ground around a fallen tree. The feathers and flowers are not close enough to actually touch her body. But there's something different that Cato did to the feathers and flowers. He set them on fire. On fire. The flames won't even lick Dawn's body. They can't touch her._

_She's good and safe, he thinks._

_Good and safe._

_But he's outraged. And he doesn't care if the Careers come. They obviously heard his scream of anguish, but they won't come. He will kill any tribute that stumbles upon him..._

"This is because of Dawn's death, isn't it?"

"Not completely."

"Then what's it about?"

"They want to punish you."

"Then they can. They've thrown me in the Games, I can take-"

"Cato," interrupts Finnick. "That's not how President Snow does it. Every victor would gladly let them take their life or hurt them. And he knows this."

"So, he'll just kill me then?" says Cato.

"No," says Finnick. "He'll...threaten those you love. He's planning something for your loved ones. The younger ones."

"What do you mean?"

_Katniss, Prim, Dabria, Nuri, Gale._

"I discovered that he's planning on having them reaped."

Time slows down.

"When?"

"It probably won't be these Games," says Finnick. "It'll be the seventy-fourth."

"What?"

His heartbeat thunders in his ears.

"How many people do you care for that could be reaped? Who are they?"

"My sister, Dabria." _She's my angel. _"My brother, Nuri." _He's a menace, but I love him. _"I guess you could count Gale." _He cares for Katniss, so I don't despise him so. _"My girl's sister, Prim." _She's so innocent._ "Then there's my girl, Katniss." _My love, my Flower._

"You need to keep them safe," says Finnick. "You need to prepare them. The line has been drawn; you crossed it."

He barely hears Finnick over the beating of his drum-like heart.

"Time is ticking Cato. And no one will be able to break through the horrors that occur when time runs out."

_Tick._

_Tock._

_Tick._

_Tock._

_"Time is ticking Cato."_

_Tick._

_Tock._

_Tick._

_Tock._

_"And no one will be able to break through the horrors that occur when time runs out."_


End file.
